1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an image data management system which performs a registration and a fetch (printing) of image data and a method thereof.
2. Description of the Prior Art
FIG. 21 is an illustrated diagram showing a typical image data management system of conventional inventions, which constructions will be explained hereinafter along with operations thereof.
First, when a manuscript is placed on a scanner 101, an image data obtaining program 104, which works in a personal computer 103, starts and issues a request to read manuscript. The image data obtaining program 104 sends an operational instruction to a scanner 101 through a SCSI cable 102. The scanner 101 drives an image sensor to read an image data at every line, at every fixed block or at every page. An image data, which is generated according to the above read processing is transferred to the image data obtaining program 104 through a SCSI cable 102, and then stored in a hard disc of the personal computer 103. If there are a plural manuscript placed on the scanner 101, an auto document feeder (ADF) provided with the scanner 101 feeds each recording paper automatically so that the next manuscript may be read in order.
Next, the image data stored in a hard disc of the personal computer 103 is transmitted to a server unit 200 through a main network 400 together with attribute information such as the image data size, the date and time of reading etc. In the server unit 200, while the received image data is stored to the hard disc, the attribute information added with pointer information of the registered location is registered on the database 201.
As described above, the server unit 200 controls centrally the image data generated by the personal computer 101, therefore the image data can be displayed by a display program 301 (or operating system) of another personal computer 300 connected with the main network 400. And by using the printing function of the display program 301, the image data can be printed out by a printer 302 connected with the personal computer 101 or an arbitrary printer (not shown) connected with the main network 400.
However, in case that an image data is printed out by the above conventional image data management system, the image data must be transferred from the server unit 200 to the personal computer 300 in the first step. And unless the image data transferred from the server unit 200 is displayed once on a screen by the display program 301 of the personal computer 300, the data cannot be printed out. It is a general processing in the conventional system Namely, in the conventional image data management system even if the image management system works only in the purpose of printing of image data, the above-mentioned processing is required. Therefore there is a problem that it takes much time to perform the print processing
This invention is proposed to resolve the above conventional problem, and the object is to provide with an image data management system and method in order to shorten the time of the print processing.
To achieve the above object, the present invention adopts the following means on the assumption that this invention relates to an image data management system composed of a digital integrated apparatus 10 and a browser unit 30 connected with each other through a network.
An image data management means 8 of the digital integrated apparatus 10 registers an image data inputted from an image data input means 2a into a storage means 9 with adding a file name based on a registration number specifying said image data, and then registers and controls the registration sequence number and attribute information of the image data corresponding to it into an attribute information table 9a. And when a specific registration number is informed, said image data management means 8 fetches the image data corresponding to said registration number and instructs an image data output means 1a to print out the fetched image data At that time, a publication means 6 publishes a list view based on the attribute information stored in the attribute information table 9a through a network A browser means 33 of the browser unit 30 transmits the print-request for an image data corresponding to at least one of the list view published by the publication means 6 toward the publication means 6 together with the registration number. The publication means received the print-request notifies the registration number of the print-request object to the image data management means 8.
According to the above procedure, it is possible to print out the image data stored in the storage means 9 of the digital integrated apparatus 10 without transfer and display of the image data, therefore it is possible to shorten the time of the print processing for image data.
And in order that the user may easily find out the image data to be printed from the list view, the present invention is so constructed that a thumbnail image, for example, may be display in a list view.
If the security print as below is used, the printed matters can not be read by other peoples. And it is effective in case that the image data management system is available for many users. Namely, at receiving the security-print-request from the browser means 33, an unique receipt number is issued for every image data of the security-print-request object and the issued receipt number is transmitted to the browser means 33. After that, if the receipt number is inputted from an operation means 4, the image data corresponding to the receipt number is to be printed out. According to this arrangement, the timing of printing out image data can be controled.
The image data management system of the present invention can be applied to the construction that a plural digital integrated apparatus is connected with each other through a network According to this construction, when an specified digital integrated apparatus 10 of which the image data output means 1a is busy receives the print-request from the browser unit 33, the image data of the print-request object registered in the storage means 9 of the specified digital integrated apparatus is to be printed by the image data output means of other specified digital integrated apparatus (as not shown) designated by the browser means 33, therefore the print processing may not be discontinued even if the image data output means la is busy.